📖 Meaning
Literally meaning 'no one picks up lost items on the road,' this idiom describes a society with excellent moral customs where people do not take for themselves things that others have dropped. It is used to praise good social conduct and public order.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom originates from 'Kongzi Jiayu' (School Sayings of Confucius), a text from the Han dynasty attributed to disciples of Confucius. It records that when Confucius first served as magistrate of Zhongdu, he established regulations for all aspects of life and death, distinguishing food by age and tasks by strength, separating men's and women's paths, and ensuring that lost items on the road were not picked up and claimed by passersby. The phrase became a classic description of an ideal, well-governed society with virtuous customs.
💡 Example Usage
在那个路无拾遗的年代，百姓安居乐业，夜不闭户。
In that era where lost items on the road went unclaimed, the people lived peacefully and doors were left unbarred at night.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 路无拾遗
- Pinyin: lù wú shí yí
- Literal Translation: road, no, pick up, lost items
- Category: Morality
- Characters: 4